As Ronnie twisted and turned the keys in the door so the two blondes could get inside, Danielle felt numb, not from the coldness, but from the thought of Stacey and how she was never going to forgive her for placing those life changing scars across her body. "Danielle, come in," Ronnie spoke gently, quietly as if her neighbours were footsteps away not wanting to be woken up. Danielle picked her head up to see the light now lit up in the hallway. The smell of her mothers flat gave her an uncontrollable comforting. She felt that tiny bit more at ease. "Would you like anything to eat or drink?" Ronnie asked as Danielle followed her upstairs and into the kitchen. "No thankyou." A whispery breath replied. Ronnie leaned against the kitchen counter with one arm, her legs crossed leaning her whole body weight onto her hand. She gazed at Danielle who stood useless in the middle of the kitchen, twiddling her fingers. Ronnie's mind became confused. All she wanted to do was to just run up and hug her. Tell her everything was going to be fine. But Danielle looked so fragile, breakable. She's never looked so vulnerable in her life.
"Danielle, here," Ronnie broke the awkward silence which followed them into the room as she scuttled through the laundry basket next to the wall. Danielle walked up behind Ronnie whilst she kneeled down digging deep through the laundry basket. She just wanted to hug her. Just needed her mum. Not a friend like Ronnie was being. After a long awaited search Ronnie pulled out some pyjamas which had just been washed and dried by the courtesy of Dot Branning. "They will be a bit big on you because you're so small but I'm sure they will do." She smiled raising up from her position to pass the clothes over to Danielle. "Why don't you go and have a wash, I suppose you wanna get out of what you were wearing for last night." She tilted her head towards Danielle as she said this. "Um, yeh, I do.. thanks, for the pyjamas." It was the most Danielle had spoke since getting back into Walford. "The bathroom is down back through the hall on the right." Ronnie pointed as Danielle shuffled along her direction, out of sight.
Although Ronnie knew Danielle was finding it hard and could completely understand the reason to why Danielle felt guilty about Stacey, she too felt the guilt. She thought that if she had just kept away from Danielle like both Stacey and Archie had warned her then none of this would have happened. But she didn't want to stay away from Danielle. It confused her so much to why she was so desperate to keep this vulnerable teen her friend. Was it because she was scared of being alone like Archie had accused her of? Or was it simply because Danielle was in someway unique.
Ronnie was now left in the kitchen on her own. She strolled through to her bedroom and lifted out the extra quilt she owned from out of the cupboard. Lugging it back to the living room she shook the duvet over the sofa, straightening out the creases and fluffing up the pillows. Although Danielle had rejected the offer for a drink Ronnie knew something warm inside her might do her good. The kettle was soon switched on making Ronnie go for the up lifting cup of hot chocolate.
Danielle stood in front of the mirror. Raising her finger under her eyes she traced the circles which had made a print on her face from crying. "I look nothing like her." She whispered under her breath as she turned on the tap to cleanse her face. The words kept cycling in her mind until she grabbed for the closest towel to dry her skin. Danielle had always seen Ronnie as her mother. Amazing for who she is. The problem which struck Danielle was that she had never been loved the way a biological mother loves her daughter and unbeknown to her, it crushed her. After refolding the hand towel which hung to the side of her, she grabbed her handbag and rooted for the most valuable thing to her in the world and once finding her treasure she was always so gentle in pulling it out. A small delicate oval shaped locket sat comfortably in her palm. Before opening it Danielle had always admired the pattern which swirled across the front of the tiny locket. But the elegance of the pattern was nothing compared to the elegance of the picture inside. Her mum. Ronnie Mitchell. She sighed gently whilst clenching the locket to her chest before placing it into her handbag again, making her way out into the hallway.
"Oh you're changed!" Ronnie spoke trying to lighten up the atmosphere. "Yeh, Oh thanks for making up a bed for me." Having a wash must have done Danielle a bit of good Ronnie thought to herself whilst stirring the two mugs of steaming hot chocolate. "Yeh sorry about having to sleep on the sofa, but hey, there isn't much of a night left." Ronnie smiled as she placed the spoon into the sink. "Oh no it's fine. I'm sorry for keeping you up go and get some rest" Danielle whispered caringly as she went to sit down on the sofa appreciating a place to sleep for the night. "Oh I'm fine Danielle, I thought you might want to have a chat or something, if you're not too tired." Ronnie said bringing the two cups over to the table. Danielle gazed at the cup being held out to her in confusion. She was sure she said she didn't want a drink. "Hot chocolate is always a pick me up on any occasion Danielle" Ronnie smiled seeing Danielle grin for the first time all night, taking the cup into her hand. "She's going to be fine you know" Ronnie assured as she got under the duvet with her legs stretching onto the table. "Yeh, Stacey can get through anything, it's a pity I'm not as strong as her." The young blonde frowned. "Well that's not true." Ronnie raised her eyebrows as a pair of green eyes began to stare at her. She began to giggle making Danielle that little bit more curious. Ronnie's plans in making Danielle forget her troubles for the moment was working. "What you laughing at?" She questioned curiously. "Oh nothing. It's just what Stacey said the other day. That you're a lot stronger then anyone thinks. You might not think you're strong Danielle but Stacey certainly does … and now I do." Ronnie said the last bit a lot quieter not really wanting Danielle to pick up the fact that she had been strong enough to physically scar her best friend. Danielle looked down ashamed. "Thank you Danielle." Ronnie whispered placing a light grasp onto Danielle's arm. Danielle looked into her mother's eyes. So much wisdom, beauty, and something else she couldn't ever get her thoughts on, because she had never known Ronnie's sad thoughts of loneliness, rejection. "What for?" Ronnie tilted her head. "You stopped me from getting hurt. Stopped Stacey hitting me." Ronnie spoke respectfully. Danielle breathed rather heavily. "I didn't want to see you get hurt." This answer made Ronnie's lip twinge in emotion. "And thankyou for being there for me, like you was that night when I needed someone. Where this whole argument with Stacey had started. All this leads to me Danielle, it's my fault." Ronnie's Ice Queen routine had almost vanished as all these emotions were expressed to the teen sat next to her. "It's not your fault, Stacey just doesn't understand." Danielle shrugged. "I just wish it had never happened." Danielle admitted whilst taking her first sip from her hot chocolate. "There is a lot of things that I wish had happened a different way Danielle" Ronnie whispered. "But you just have to pretend to move on with your life and hope the mistakes soon disappear." But one bad moment in her life had never disappeared from Ronnie. She looked at Danielle who was staring into space, the poor teen had already faced an abortion with nobody to support her and now this. "I'm gonna help you Danielle, like you helped me last night." Ronnie smiled warmly, it made Danielle's heart melt. Her vulnerability levels were sky high. It was a good job she was in safe hands. Ronnie dragged a hand through her tangled hair realising she needed to clean herself up, it had been a long night of work, drama and hospitals. "Danielle, Do you mind if I just go in the shower I wont be too long." She placed a hand onto Danielle's shoulder. "Thanks Ronnie." Danielle spoke as Ronnie pulled herself up. She needn't say no more as Ronnie clocked onto her thanks for helping her throughout the hospital and giving her somewhere to sleep. "10 minutes." She mouthed as she walked out of the living room. Danielle sunk further into the sofa, she breathed in the scent of her mother's quilt it had the same smell as the coat in the abortion clinic. Although it dug out harsh memories it oddly comforted her.
Ronnie sat at her dressing table, carefully she pulled her locket off her head followed by her hair. "There is a lot of things I wish hadn't happened the way they did." She whispered under her breathe as she slowly unpicked the tiny pendant showing a fresh faced Danielle unbeknown to her. She kissed the tiny photo before closing the locket back up, placing it onto the side of her dressing gown table like she did every time she went in the shower. She slowly began to stand up, without her locket she felt bear but she knew she could wear it soon enough, it wasn't gone forever.
A couple of minutes felt like hours for Danielle as she stared around the living room. She heard the noise of thousands of water droplets splashing onto the floor of the shower. She had never had the chance to investigate her mothers flat properly and knew Ronnie would be in the shower for at least ten minutes. Pushing the duvet to one side, the young blonde pulled herself up with the help of the chair arm and wandered around the room. She browsed at several photos dotted around the room, one of her and her sister Roxy in Ibiza, she admired her mums tan as she placed the photo back onto the windowsill. Turning round she was faced with the hall way. The noise of the shower was still going strong. She knew it was wrong, but she wanted to look at more rooms that she hadn't been in. She light footed down the hallway as if Ronnie could hear her. The last door on her left had always been the mystery, slowly she peered through to be welcomed by a purple bedroom, neat and tidy just like her half of Stacey's bedroom. She smiled as she took a step further into the room. But something caught her eye. Something she had seen oh so many times before. Making her way over to the dressing table her thoughts were confirmed. A locket, just like hers. She gasped in surprise as she admired the exact same art work on the front. Picking up oh so carefully her curiosity was racing, would she find what she wanted to see? Had Ronnie been keeping a locket just like hers all this time? She needed to know. Digging her nail into the clasp the locket popped open. Danielle nearly dropped the necklace as her shock got the best of her. Her thoughts were correct. It was herself. Ronnie owned a locket and she has kept it for 20 years. Danielle's heart was pounding. Placing the locket still open on the table she rushed back into the living room to retrieve her handbag before running straight back into the bedroom. She placed the two lockets together. Light bounced back from the both of them. It was one of the most amazing sights Danielle had ever seen. For Ronnie to have kept a locket surely she held something for the daughter she gave birth to. And it was that moment. It was that moment where Danielle knew it was time to take things away from a friendship level. She held the two lockets in both hands. In her left was her locket. The one which held a fragile picture of her mother in her youth. In her right hand was the locket she had never seen before. A picture of her. She clenched her fists around both the lockets and then clenched her eyes. A rash decision was made. Placing her very own locket onto the dressing table Danielle ran out the bedroom. The past was switched.